Source: City of Plymouth
Last year, Councillor Mark Coker (the Claimant) applied for the planning decision in relation to Wilmot Gardens to be quashed, as the Council accepted one of the grounds in a legal challenge.
Following the Planning Committee granting permission for the application, the Council accepted the contention that it was necessary to include an appropriate condition to ensure the provision of affordable housing in perpetuity.
At the time of the application, planning officers did not consider it was necessary to include the condition because the number of units proposed fell below the policy threshold for affordable housing and was secured by a land transfer agreement. However, after further detailed consideration of the planning and legal issues raised, an application was made to the courts for permission to quash the decision and to bring the planning application back before Planning Committee, with the appropriate condition to secure the affordable housing in planning terms.
The Council as the Defendant received the sealed court order on Thursday 8 May which set out that a judge had given permission for the judicial review to be granted and had further consented to the quashing of the planning decision as requested in the Claimant’s application.
The planning department determines over 1,400 planning applications every year and while the department makes every effort to deal with every application efficiently, proportionately and in accordance with all relevant legislation, policy and guidance, the planning system is increasingly complex.